Die Deutsche Gesellschaft für Soziologie (DGS) bietet Studieninteressierten ein Informationsportal unter www.studium.org/soziologie an, auf dem sämtliche Studiengänge mit soziologischen Inhalten vertreten sind, die an deutschen Hochschulen angeboten werden.
Die Studiengänge der Universität Siegen finden Sie unter: http://www.studium.org/soziologie/suche/?q=Siegen.
Aktuelles
Our Requirements
Making sensible use of the courses we offer depends on your willingness to acquire new skills. We would therefore like to give you a few pointers to provide a better idea of what you can expect when studying social science.
- Studying social sciences is a big undertaking, as, like any university course, it is not easy. It requires considerable work, effort and discipline and cannot just be done “on the side”, as it were. Social science students must in particular enjoy thinking and academic knowledge, paired with a lively interest in political and social questions. An openness and a curiosity for the living conditions of other people, societies and cultures should go hand in hand with an ability to maintain a critical distance to one’s own living conditions.
- Learning the methods of empirical social research plays a key role here, in terms of becoming both academically and professionally qualified. The quantitative methods and the statistical ones linked to them are considerably formalized and require solid knowledge of secondary level mathematics. The learning process also includes the use of computer programmes, meaning that basic computer knowledge is of advantage.
- Studying social science requires a substantial amount of reading. Anyone who doesn’t enjoy reading will have difficulties with the sheer quantity, to put it mildly. Yet even avid readers should bear in mind that academic texts are not an easy read, but rather mean a lot of hard work. This work also includes a willingness to read material in a foreign language, as a significant part of social science research literature is not available in German. Excellent knowledge of English is indispensable and it is regarded as a given that even demanding English texts are to be read on a regular basis. Good school knowledge of French is also of advantage.
- Foreign language skills are also vital for the international profile of the courses and the qualifications for the job market that linked to it. We therefore strongly recommend that you also have knowledge of a second foreign language.
- Studying social sciences doesn’t just mean you need to enjoy reading, but also writing. But the same thing applies here too: writing a school essay in the last year of high school can’t be comparing with putting together an academic text. The latter requires a much greater linguistic precision as well as logic, a systematic approach, and analytical acuity and coherence.
- These criteria equally apply to presenting academic content orally, whether when giving a presentation or just making a comment at a seminar. A social science seminar is neither a slightly more formal get-together nor a group therapy meeting.
- Part of the discipline involved in studying involves students attending seminars regularly, preparing and reviewing their respective content thoroughly and participating in them in an objective manner. Attendance is recorded via participation lists and forms a prerequisite for passing a particular unit and receiving the necessary credit points
- Another aspect of this discipline entails finding out in advance which units are being offered in the next semester via the LSF portal and potentially getting in contact with the respective teaching staff to see which prerequisites and preparations are necessary to take part in them.
- The academic content linked to social sciences is codified to a relatively small extent, meaning that different academic views which exist alongside one another are more the rule than the exception. Interdisciplinary argumentation often increases the complexity of the texts in question. This places in turn significant demands on intellectual flexibility, a willingness to engage with critical thought, and intense engagement with said academic content.
- This relatively low codification of knowledge shouldn’t be misunderstood as meaning that no factual knowledge needs to be learnt. On the contrary: the breadth of the required material is considerable and a degree of learning by heart is unavoidable.
- As you can see, studying social sciences places considerable demands on individual commitment at a range of different levels. The individual aspects of the admission process and performance requirements are available in the examination and study regulations of the respective course.